Honey Lane Hospital (Hansard, 16 April 1986)

§ Lord John-Mackie
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.

§ Baroness Trumpington
My Lords, the matters raised by the noble Lord are the responsibility of the West Essex District Health Authority. I understand that the authority held formal consultations on the proposal to close Honey Lane Hospital. The proposal was not opposed by the community health council which formally represents the local community and was not therefore referred to Ministers. It would not be appropriate for me to comment in the circumstances.

§ Lord John-Mackie
My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness for that rather unsatisfactory reply. I was hoping she would be more kind to me, and perhaps we shall be more kind to her, on this Question than on the last one. Is she aware that Waltham Abbey is a community of 22,000 people who are worried about the closure of this hospital? Is she also aware that the Epping District Council is asking for a judicial review on the subject, admittedly on the procedure of the closure, and that the local people have the support of all the elected bodies in the area? She may say that the community health council represents that, I do not know, but it certainly has supported it in that way.
However, if the hospital is to be closed, is the noble Baroness aware that the people of Waltham Abbey feel that they should have a health service centre and the right way to do it would be to use the old buildings for this to provide a nursing home, an ambulance station, an elderly people's home, a chiropody clinic and so on? I feel that though it is the West Essex Health Authority's pigeon, the noble Baroness could give the authority a push in the right direction to do that. May I point out—

Noble Lords
Speech!

§ Lord John-Mackie
My Lords, all right, there will be time in the future. I shall leave it at that for the present.

§ Baroness Trumpington
My Lords, the matters raised by the noble Lord are for the West Essex District Health Authority, I am confident that the DHA has done all it can to ensure that no unnecessary inconvenience will occur when the agreed closure takes place. For example, the DHA is providing out-patient clinics, a new NHS nursing home and a new day centre for geriatric patients in Waltham Abbey. I understand that Mr. Hackford, the district general manager and a near neighbour of the noble Lord, Lord John-Mackie, is keen to discuss these matters with him.

§ Lord Graham of Edmonton
My Lords, I wonder whether the Minister can tell the House what consultation takes place between neighbouring 666 regional health authorities in matters of this kind? For example, within five miles of this hospital, the neighbouring health authority, North-East Thames, has closed the Enfield War Memorial Hospital. It has plans to decimate the Highlands Hospital in Enfield and to close the cancer unit at Edmonton. I wonder whether the Minister can tell the House what steps the Ministry takes to ensure that when closures of this kind take place the local councils and ancillary services are adequate and that patients are not returned to the community without the Minister being satisfied that alternative arrangements have been made.

§ Baroness Trumpington
My Lords, as the noble Lord knows, matters that take place to do with closures are matters for the district health authorities and the regional health authorities. Unless community health councils object as I said in the original Answer, the matter is not brought for adjudication by Ministers.

§ Lord Graham of Edmonton
My Lords, the Minister has not taken on board my point. I have given examples, such as the Cheshunt Cottage Hospital, again within an area of five miles. In a community where five hospitals are being closed, what concern does the Ministry show about it?

§ Baroness Trumpington
My Lords, the Question on the Order Paper refers to Honey Lane Hospital. If the noble Lord would care to raise a Question on any of the other hospitals which he has mentioned, I shall be glad to answer it on another occasion.

§ Lord Underhill
My Lords, does the noble Baroness appreciate that, as my noble friend has just referred to another hospital, one cannot consider these things on a piecemeal basis? Does she recall that I had an Unstarred Question debate on the closure of another hospital also in the Epping Forest District Council and in the West Essex District Health Authority area administered by Waltham Forest, and this would be the fifth hospital in that area to be closed? Do the Government appreciate the inconvenience for people receiving ancillary services and visiting patients when they have to go to these very large hospitals some miles away?

§ Baroness Trumpington
My Lords, we must stick to the Question on the Order Paper. The health authority issued a consultation document in May 1985 proposing the closure of this hospital for two special reasons. I would go into those reasons if there was more time. But, if I may say so, I well remember the debate that we had on the other hospitals in that area.

§ Lord Ennals
My Lords, will the noble Baroness accept that the Act which established the National Health Service placed the responsibility for the provision of a health service upon Ministers? Does she agree that it is the responsibility of Ministers to ensure that an effective health service is provided throughout the country, and that for Ministers constantly to say that this is the responsibility of a local health authority is not good enough? May I ask a further question? Is she aware that there are growing numbers of hospitals being closed without adequate provision being made 667 for the people who live in the area and for whom there are no other services?

§ Baroness Trumpington
My Lords, certainly in this case that is not true. There is perfectly adequate provision being made. This is a specialist hospital and other arrangements have been made for all the specialties, many of which will be more convenient for the majority of patients in the future, plus the new hospitals and clinics which I have already spoken about at Waltham Abbey.

§ Lord John-Mackie
My Lords, may I ask the noble Baroness to confirm that in regard to the three places that she mentioned which are to help the ancillary services they are all about two miles apart? The coronary clinic is in Stewartson Road and the other clinic is a mile away. What the people in Waltham Abbey would like is a health centre with all these services under the roof of the present hospital.

§ Baroness Trumpington
My Lords, out-patient clinics will be re-provided at a more central location in Waltham Abbey. Specialties using Honey Lane have a large number of in-patients from outside Waltham Abbey. Re-provision for the majority of these inpatient will be at Bishop's Stortford and at Epping, nearest their homes. The proposed reorganisation with GP beds staying in Waltham Abbey will therefore arguably be of benefit from the travelling point of view.